I'm new to FIOS. Why do I often see these black spaces on the left and right sides on HD channels? Is there a setting adjustment I can make to correct this?
Please note, this only occurs occasionally, not all the time nor on every HD channel.
Is the program you are watching actually wide-screen?
Does the aspect ration look right? (do people and objects look stretched wide or do they look squished tall)
I assuem you are using a wide screen TV?
It is because the program being broadcast is actually in SD 4x3 format even though it is on an HD channel. It's not a problem with the TV or Verizon. Some stations will stretch SD programs when they are broadcast on HD channels but not all.
@menton11 wrote:I'm new to FIOS. Why do I often see these black spaces on the left and right sides on HD channels? Is there a setting adjustment I can make to correct this?
Please note, this only occurs occasionally, not all the time nor on every HD channel.
There is a motorola PDF file on the net called the ABC's of HDTV.
What you're seeing is a aspect ratio mismatch..
Here's a snippet of what the guide says
Aspect Ratio MismatchesBy now, we’re all familiar with Letterboxing—the black horizontal bars that preserve the original 16:9 aspect ratio when watching a widescreen-formatted movie on a standard 4:3 television.Pillarboxing, on the other hand, is the term for vertical blackbars on either side of a 4:3 program shown on a widescreen 16:9 television screen. Since the majority of television content is 4:3, these bars allow the original program to be seen in its intended format without distortion or stretching.Widescreen Stretch Modes Some viewers dislike black bars, no matter what. Plus,since widescreen HDTV manufacturers recognize that most programming remains 4:3, most 16:9 HDTVs are able to stretch 4:3 programs to a full screen display with no black bars. These programs will appear distorted from their original presentation.Hybrid Aspect Ratios DTV-HD broadcasters must transmit 16:9 video, yet not all HD broadcasts contain full 16:9 video. The most common hybrids are 14:9 and 15:9, with thin black bars used to make up thedifference. This can be confusing for consumers, who question why their HD-broadcast channel contains black bars.
For HD stations on the motorola box, you can't remove the black bars without using your TV picture mode settings (16x9, zoom stretch etc...) SD programming can be stretched using the motorola cable boxes. menu > settings > video settings > SD override
These are additionally talked about in more detail, in a document I found. set top box FAQ from Motorola
@Hubrisnxs wrote:
For HD stations on the motorola box, you can't remove the black bars without using your TV picture mode settings(16x9, zoom stretch etc...) SD programming can be stretched using the motorola cable boxes. menu > settings > video settings > SD overrideThese are additionally talked about in more detail, in a document I found. set top box FAQ from Motorola
But you can use the Aspect button (the # key) on the remote to temporarily adjust the size of the 4:3 picture on HD channels and eliminate the black bars if you really want. At least this works for me on my DVR (currently a 7232 but also worked on my original 6416) connected via an HTMI cable to the TV. It only works for as long a you continue on the same channel, changing the channel causes the setting to be lost and you must reset it again. The settings are what I would describe as normal, wider, even wider, and wider and higher, in rotation.
The above option using the Aspect button works on the Motorola box itself, it does not affect any TV settings (at least not on my Sony TV.)
I personally prefer to just leave the black bars there and watch the picture in the original 4:3 format, but the option to change that temporarily is available.
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Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
QIP7232, IMG 1.8, Build 02.54
Keller, TX 76248
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